The Shady Side Of ESPN

The following article contains mention of addiction.

ESPN first launched back in 1979 as television's first satellite cable network for purely sports content. Bringing fans a non-stop barrage of games, commentary, and more, the network broke new ground in sports programming with such innovations as its "SportsCenter" shows, providing viewers with updates on scores, sports news, and other highlights several times throughout the day. Along the way, ESPN provided a platform for numerous former athletes, as well as launching the broadcasting careers for the likes of Keith Olbermann and "Good Morning America" anchor Robin Roberts.

Despite being owned by Disney — the world's foremost purveyor of wholesome family entertainment — ESPN has experienced more than its fair share of controversy and scandals over the years. These have run the gamut, ranging from a fraudulent scheme involving Emmy Awards, to some sexual harassment complaints, to an on-air personality's outrageously bigoted social media posts, to a high-level resignation brought about by a cocaine-related extortion scheme. And those are only the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

Former NFL quarterback Sean Salisbury went on to become a football analyst for ESPN, until it all went horribly wrong. In 2007, Deadspin reported that Salisbury was the actual subject of a gossip column from CBS Sportline's Mike Freeman, who wrote, "The NFL analyst who shall not be named that took a picture of his p***s with a cell phone camera and has shown it to numerous, uncomfortable women, then was suspended by his network for it."

Salisbury sued Deadspin, but in 2010 confessed that the story was actually true. "I was ashamed, and I didn't want to say anything," Salisbury told USA Today (via CBS News). "I thought it would go away and let my ego get in the way ... A stupid mistake can cost you, and this has really cost me."

Sadly, things went from bad to worse for Salisbury. In a 2012 interview with the New York Daily News, he revealed he had chronic pain from the injuries sustained playing football, and had sunk into a deep depression after losing his ESPN job. "I'm a walking train wreck," Salisbury said, admitting that he deserved to be held accountable for his actions, but that what he had gone through had far exceeded that. "The past few years have been a rough, rough time. I hit rock bottom physically, mentally, emotionally and financially all at the same time."

During his years at ESPN, Neil Goldberg was something of a superstar producer, having produced various motorsports programming for the network. His biggest innovation was strapping a camera onto members of NASCAR pit crews, which he revealed in an interview with ESPN was inspired by David Letterman's "Monkey Cam," in which a camera was mounted on the chimpanzee who ran rampant through the set of his late-night talk show. 

While Goldberg's star may have been on the rise, it all came crashing down in 2010 when he was arrested for public indecency. The arrest came after a woman who was walking her dog spotted him standing on a stool that he placed outside the window of a home that wasn't his, peering inside. After turning himself in to police, reported NBC Connecticut, Goldberg confessed to pleasuring himself while watching a woman getting dressed.

In the wake of the incident, ESPN confirmed to CBS News that Goldberg was no longer with the network. As motorsports website SceneDaily.com reported (via Sports Media Watch), charges against Goldberg were subsequently dismissed during a court hearing because he "never admitted guilt and there was no finding of any criminal wrongdoing."

ESPN was back in the spotlight in 2015 when then-president John Skipper announced plans to lay off close to 300 employees. In the announcement, Skipper insisted the decision to sack so many staffers had not been made lightly, but was in reaction to the changing ways in which sports fans consume content due to advancing technology. "No matter how many times we've adjusted course to lead the industry over the years, the decisions affecting our employees are never made lightly," the executive wrote in a company memo (via The New York Times).

During its first round of widespread layoffs, ESPN had reportedly shed more than seven million subscribers within the past two years, a number that promised to continue trending downward. That proved to be the case in 2021 when ESPN announced it was cutting 300 more employees from its workforce, and eliminating 200 open positions. This time, reported The New York Times, the reason had to do with the lack of sports to cover during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In 2023, sports had returned, but ESPN announced further layoffs, eliminating more than 20 on-air positions. Among those to get the axe were NBA announcers Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy. "These difficult decisions, based more on overall efficiency than merit, will help us meet our financial targets and ensure future growth," the company said in a statement to Deadline.

Former pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, Curt Schilling segued into becoming a baseball analyst when he was hired by ESPN in 2010. Schilling found himself on the outs with his employer in 2016 when he shared a meme on Facebook displaying his view of the transgender community. "A man is a man no matter what they call themselves. I don't care what they are, who they sleep with, men's room was designed for the p***s, women's not so much. Now you need laws telling us differently? Pathetic," read the caption (via NBC Sports), which was accompanied by an insulting caricature of a transgender woman.

That was hardly Schilling's first controversial social media post. The previous year, he was hit with backlash for comparing Muslims to Nazis, and then for sharing a photo of a t-shirt (worn by an attendee at one of Donald Trump's campaign rallies) recommending that journalists be hanged. The anti-trans sentiment, however, was the final straw for ESPN, and Schilling was fired. "ESPN is an inclusive company," read a statement from the network, reported by The New York Times. "Curt Schilling has been advised that his conduct was unacceptable and his employment with ESPN has been terminated."

Of ESPN's many scandals, the resignation of network president John Skipper is arguably the most dramatic, given it involved both drugs and blackmail. "I have struggled for many years with a substance addiction. I have decided that the most important thing I can do right now is to take care of my problem," Skipper said in the 2017 statement announcing he was resigning (reported by Fox News). 

In a subsequent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Skipper confirmed that the substance in question was cocaine, and that he felt he was able to keep his drug use separate from his responsibilities at the network. Then, it all came crashing down in a heartbeat. "In December, someone from whom I bought cocaine attempted to extort me," Skipper explained. Under threat of being exposed, rather than buckle, he instead met with Bob Iger — CEO of Disney, ESPN's parent company — and came clean. It became clear to both men that Skipper had placed Iger in an "untenable position," and his only option was to resign.

While his drug use cost him his dream job, Skipper acknowledged that the extortion attempt was the ultimate wake up call that made him realize that his cocaine use — which he insisted had never hampered his job performance — needed to end, immediately. "I acted very foolishly," Skipper admitted. "It made me want to seek help and get this out of my life."

In 2017, some public backlash was generated when statues honoring Confederate figures from the Civil War were removed. The whole thing came to a head in Charlottesville, Virginia, when a group of white supremacists staged a rally, protesting the removal of a statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee, which turned violent during a clash with counter-protesters.

Amid this fraught scenario was a University of Virginia football game set to be broadcast on ESPN. Ahead of the game, ESPN quietly sidelined announcer Robert Lee because of concerns that his name was too similar to that of the Civil War general, who died in 1870. "We collectively made the decision with Robert to switch games as the tragic events in Charlottesville were unfolding, simply because of the coincidence of his name," ESPN said in a statement to The New York Times. "It's a shame that this is even a topic of conversation and we regret that who calls play-by-play for a football game has become an issue."

ESPN was hit with backlash from conservative news outlets, but the network insisted there was no liberal agenda at play, simply an attempt to protect Lee, an Asian-American, from being caught up in a firestorm. "No politically correct efforts. No race issues," an ESPN spokesperson told Sports Illustrated. "Just trying to be supportive of a young guy who felt it best to avoid the potential zoo."

In January 2024, a shady scheme involving ESPN's slew of Emmy Awards, which went back decades, was unveiled. The Athletic reported that producers for ESPN's "College GameDay" submitted fake names of non-existent people for Emmy inclusion, with the ruse reportedly going back as far as 1997. 

The reason: so that if the show won — which it had, many times — ESPN would receive multiple extra Emmy trophies for those fake people. The fake names bore the same initials as the show's on-air talent, and since the on-air personalities weren't eligible for Emmy consideration, those extra statues would be modified with the on-air people's names engraved and the statues presented to them. The people given those fake awards were none the wiser and didn't realize the Emmys they believed they had won weren't legit. After the scam was revealed, ESPN was forced to return 37 Emmy Awards to the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

"I think it was really crummy what they did to me and others," said Shelley Smith, who was among those who had to return their fake Emmys. "This was a misguided attempt to recognize on-air individuals who were important members of our production team," read a statement from ESPN, promising to revise their network's Emmy submission process, as well as undertaking an internal investigation and then disciplining those responsible.

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).